----------------------WELCOME TO PLOVDIV

The Bulgarian town of Plovdiv is situated along the two banks of the river Maritza with its slow water, and also on a number of picturesque hills (called 'tepe' by the local people) that are part of the town's charm and beauty. Plovdiv is located in the Southern/Central part of Bulgaria. Being the second largest city in the country, it has a population of 350'000. There is a kind of magic in Plovdiv in all seasons. The town is always unique and fascinating. In the winter it is fabuously white; in the spring it is covered with green and flowers, in the summer it is almost unreal in the ghastly heat of Thracia, in the autumn it is calm and placid, with ripe figs and sweet grapes dropping into soft foliage... Plovdiv can hardly be described in simple words... One should see it and feel its unique atmosphere in order to understand it. Remains of ancient, mediaeval, revival and modern culture coexist and are interwoven into the unobtrusive, irresistible and eternal beauty of this city. They do not stand in each other's way; they complement and enrich each other to make Plovdiv a synonym of Bulgarian history and a genuine world city. Plovdiv is very, very old. The Eternal City, as Rome is conventionally called, is much younger. Athens, Carthage and Constantinople came into being later. A contemporary of Troy and having survived Mycenae, Plovdiv is a city upon layers of cities and an epoch upon layers of epochs. Plovdiv is all in one: a Thracian and classical Greek polis, the pride of Philip of Macedon, the capital of Thrace under the Roman Empire, a centre of Byzantinism, a stronghold of the Bulgarians, a dream of the crusaders -- a magnificent, wealth and most important city. Kendros, Eumolpia, Philippopolis, Pulpudeva, Thrimonzium, Pulden, Populdin, Ploudin, Filibe -- those were the ancient names of Plovdiv throughout its 6000 to 8000 years of existence. The name Plovdiv first appeared in 15 century documents and has remained till today. Walking around Old Plovdiv, visitors enjoy the steep, cobbled streets and lanes with bow-windows and eaves above them. Facades are colored in harmonious combinations, with stylish patterns of white and blue. Windows have either wooden shuttles, or iron nets. Lovely gardens with plenty of green and flowers, fruit trees, old vines and figs, evergreen boxshrubs and roses under the shadows of old trees are hidden behind solid walls and heavy gates. Fancily colored pots of gullyflowers stand prominently behind windowpanes and upon sills. Wells are now only an exotic adornment. The babble of water running from old little fountains and taps breaks the silence. Tiny doors hidden within the thick walls lead to the neighbours' yards. All those beautiful colours of the narrow, patriarchal world of the past helped the Bulgarian ancestors to survive during the long decades of the yoke.